OT: When is it time to record an EP?

[Boy_Narf]

Hello Everyone,

So a bit of background. I have been drumming in a band for about a year now, and our singer has been really wanting to record an EP. We typically gig twice a month, but have 0 draw. Once in a while a friend will show up, but we are usually just playing to the other bands, and bar staff. In the past I have been in bands in the exact same situation. They think that recording a CD will all of a sudden make us famous or something. I do the entire process myself, as I have all of the gear and think studios are a rip off. As you all know, recording a CD takes a long time (especially since I'm a bit of a perfectionist). To me, it always ends up seeming like a waste of time in the end. The band usually breaks up, or we still have 0 traction even after sending our music all over the place.

So what do you guys think?

Should we be drawing a strong crowd on a regular basis, and hold off on the EP until people actually know we exist?

Or,

In this day and age is an EP just something you do for fun (I.E. give out to your friends, family, radio stations) and hope it gets you publicity?

Thanks,

[Sid Nitzerglobin]

My approach has always been to do any music for fun/satisfaction derived from the experience itself but that's a large part of why I no longer earn a living doing anything related to it.

Given that you have gear/software you're happy with I think recording is definitely worth it whether it amounts to anything or not. If it turns out well, hey you made some cool music! If not, you probably stand better chance of making something you're happy w/ the next time you record than if you hadn't.

[Gladmarr]

I'd say record an EP the moment you have enough material for an EP. You won't gain more enthusiasm for the material the longer you sit on it, and you never know when your band will break up and you'll never be able to make that music again. Just make the recording!!

[Boy_Narf]

Dang you guys are all pro-recording

I'm really not a fan of recording, so that doesn't really help things haha. I'm horrible at it! Live I'm a really solid drummer and make few if any mistakes. Recording is a different story. Seems like once I press that red button I forget how to play. It's usually quite a painful experience. I have been practicing the songs in question (which I have never done before), so I'm hoping to be more prepared this time around. Last time I recorded an EP, I got so frustrated I ended up tracking small sections bit by bit. Play a verse perfect. Stop. Play a chorus perfect. Stop. And so on and so forth till the end of the track. In the past I have even ended up doing some heavy quantization... I know horrible!!! But the songs came out sounding fairly decent. My number one pet peeve or recording is off time drumming. I always wonder why the drummer didn't go back and either re-play the section, or line up the beats so they are on time. I often wonder how professional drummers "actually" record. Do they punch in and record in sections? or are they talented enough to play the song all the way through without messing up. Perhaps you guys could shed some light on how you/your drummers work in the studio???

Anyhow,

I should probably just get it over with before the singer throws me off a bridge haha.

[a.hun]

You are right, playing live and recording in the studio are very different. And you aren't alone in preferring live. It is only exceptional musicians who are equally good at both.

I used to play with a drummer who was both fantastic live and a one take wonder in the studio. I wish he was still around to ask his secrets, but sadly not.
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Yeah music is for enjoying, and I understand that you don't maybe enjoy the studio side of things so much. But you have to view it as a means to an end. A really decent demo can make all the difference to getting your sounds out there. With a bit of luck and good targeting it might move you towards some more fun gigs where people actually turn up...

So that is +1 again. Do it!


Andy.

[misterfolkertsma]

In this day and age is an EP just something you do for fun (I.E. give out to your friends, family, radio stations) and hope it gets you publicity?,

This! We record something every now and then just for the sake of recording it and being able to share it with friends. If you're proud of the music, then sure why not record it? Unless you're secretly not happy with the material yet and feel it's not ready for recording yet?

[bclaire]

Interesting dilemma.

On the one hand, recording an EP is going to make you all hyper-analyze the songs in a way that is only going to improve your live performance as long as you're realistic in how much you layer or add into the songs. The benefits of recording probably outweigh just playing live. If you're only doing a couple of gigs a month, it shouldn't interfere with your live schedule.

I'd say go for it.

[Les Paul Lover]

I'm not a fan of EPs. They are too small, and I rarely end upnplaying them because they only have 3 or 5 songs


I would say do the recordings for sure, share them on bandcamp, soundcloud, but hold off releasing a CD until you have a full album.

But at least, if it's recorded, you have it. And then you can share it with us!!!!

[MikeD]

Tough call but I'm going for the democracy vote here. For example: 3 guys wanna record and 1 doesn't means;
a. you should still be able to air your opinion.
B. but if it's still 3-1 than its either jump on the bandwagon or catch another train.

Now the getting famous cause you release an l.p. is just crazy talk. But what if everybody thought like that? Statistically you always have a better chance at winning the lotto if you buy a ticket.

Now if you do decide too stay with the band and go for the gold.. do the best damned job you can! This means practicing regularly with, what we call here, "the click" and of course it takes time to get over those red-button nerves. Just be sure to tell the guys that you have issues with it and it's gunna take time.
I've even seen good studio-teks trick the drummer into thinking it was a "trial-run" just to recheck the eqs and record the first song in one take!!... that's a confidence boost that got us through 3 songs + setup & mastering in 2 days.

[Ronnie Robinson]

My view is definitely get some tracks recorded!

[jax510]

Record. How many people do you know show up for a band playing that they have never heard of? Don't necessarily make a CD but post it online so people can hear what you sound like. Just focus on 3 good songs I would say.

[John_BlackWolf]

An EP is good as a calling card and IMO should be made as soon as you have your sound defined. Write 6 songs and record your best 3. Ask yourself what the purpose is...Radio airplay? how easy it is for the listener to be engaged? to show musical diversity? etc

Try not to underestimate the benefit of working with a great engineer/producer. There's a lot more to them than having the gear and hitting record.

You probably won't notice any difference in popularity whatsoever when you have it done.

You won't be able to build a fan base playing live without playing live to music fans. Unfortunately it's a catch 22 situation: Need large fan base to get better gigs > Need better gigs to get larger fan base.

[Boy_Narf]

This is a fairly interesting band. The singer/guitar player does everything. I just show up play the parts he wants, and add a bit of flair. Until last Thursday we have been playing as a 2 piece for about 6 months. So it was 50/50 hah. We has about 40 songs, and we play what ever he is in the mood for on that particular night. He is constantly doing garage band midi drum demos, and I have done proper ez dummer drums on one track. Aside from that we always send live recordings to potential venues (record every show with a Zoom H2N).

I should probably just suck it up and get it over with.

You guys are no fun at all haha.

thanks,

[Randy Bass]

Don't record an EP. It makes you think that you have to over-produce/engineer/master it if you call it an EP. Don't do it to "make it big" or "get your material out there".

Record a demo. Do it for fun, posterity and self-analysis purposes. Do it live with the full band as the scratch track. Do as many takes as you need until the drums are good (not perfect). Then do minimal overdubs for guitars and vocals and call it a day.

The best drummer that I've worked with just had a metronome/click in his headphones for the live scratch track to keep time and we got three songs down in less than an hour. The guitar and vocal overdubs then took another three weeks, which was ridiculous. The drums were still the best part of the recordings by far.

[Boy_Narf]

I usually have my parts memorized, and have honestly never used a scratch track. I just play with a click. I always find that guitar players I jam with can't get the scratch track "tight" enough with the click. I want the drum part to be as tight as possible, and let the multiple guitar/bass tracks add a bit of sloppiness.

Sure we can call it a demo. I like that idea better hah. We are not looking for something pro, just something great enough to get on the local radio. These days (for indie bands) it seems like the crappier/more low-fi your recordings come out the better.

Local band I knew in town a few years back recorded their demo on a cassette player that was sitting in the middle of the room. They then made their own copies with a dual tape deck the very time consuming way (play on one deck, record on the other). Their tapes sold like crazy, and everyone loved em. It was nearly impossible to hear any definition from the instruments, and their guitars were all out of tune, but hey... indie rock right?

Like I said before, we have millions of garage band recordings to a click, so if I need a scratch, I'll just use one of those.